Exodus 2:1-5:9

We turn now to the story of Charlton Heston Moses. It is difficult for me to read this story without picturing the movie version, The Ten Commandments, with Heston and Yul Brynner. I'll eventually figure out how to add photos to this blog, so I can include cool photos of people like Yul and Charlton hamming it up in their outsized roles--Moses and Pharaoh, respectively.  

Here (as in the movie, I guess), Moses strikes me as a real three dimensional man. He grows angry at injustice--indeed too angry for his own good--and kills a man, eventually requiring him to flee Egypt to Midian. He meets a girl, settles down, and tends the sheep of his father-in-law. But God has other sheep in mind for Moses. Like Jesus, Moses will become a shepherd of men and women. During his exile, the Israelites continue to suffer greatly in Egypt. "As their cry for release went up to God, He heard their groaning and was mindful of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." The Lord God speaks to Moses and commissions him to return to Egypt to rescue His people. Moses has doubts, is afraid, and thinks he is not up to the task--a real man.  But he must trust God, Who tells him "I will be with you." God gives Himself a name for Moses: "I am Who am" or Yahweh. (I have to confess that I don't understand why the Catholic Church has decided that we will no longer use the word "Yahweh", but I digress.)  Moses returns to Egypt and the Israelites are moved and inspired by Moses' message.  Pharaoh, however, is not, and he refuses to free the Israelites. Moses is joined by his brother, Aaron, and together they try to convince Pharaoh on this point. But he is obdurate. Instead, Pharaoh imposes even harsher work conditions on the Israelites, increasing their suffering.